This week, Hendon 1 scored their first match win since November, with an emphatic 4½–1½ home victory against Hammersmith 1. Meanwhile, Hendon 4 lost 2–4 to Hammersmith 3.
The Division 1 match started somewhat chaotically. Hammersmith’s captain was absent, and had let us know earlier in the day that their team would be defaulting a board; at the start of play, however, only four players were present, none of whom seemed to know what the board order was, or whether a fifth player would be turning up! We got the match underway, and eventually the missing Hammersmith player did arrive, 20 minutes late.
David Amior won a pawn and converted the king-and-pawn ending on Board 4, and Jonathan Rubeck also won after opening the centre against his opponent’s uncastled king, so we quickly found ourselves 3–0 up, assured of at least tieing the match.
Captain Eric Eedle had a tense position on Board 3 after sacrificing an exchange with the Black pieces, leaving a pawn embedded in his opponent’s camp on the e-file. His opponent couldn’t withstand the pressure, and Eric won, putting us 4–0 up. You can see the finish to that game below.
We were pleased that IM Lorin D’Costa was able to make his first appearance of the season for Hendon 1 this evening! It has become a bit of a running joke that we always lose the toss when Lorin plays, and he found himself with the tough assignment of playing the Black pieces against strong teenager Harry Bryant. Unfortunately Lorin succumbed to a kingside attack, but the match was already won. Rob Willmoth played out a draw on Board 2 to create a relatively comfortable 4½–1½ scoreline.
| Hendon 1 | Hendon 1 | Hammersmith 1 | Hammersmith 1 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | D'Costa, Lorin AR (IM) | 2460 | 0 - 1 | Bryant, Harry (CM) | 2238 | ||
| 2 | Willmoth, Robert F (CM) | 2223 | ½ - ½ | Lau, Luke (CM) | 2146 | ||
| 3 | Eedle, Eric F | 2094 | 1 - 0 | Kelmendi, Bajrush | 2005 | ||
| 4 | Amior, David | 1992 | 1 - 0 | Billenness, Greg | 1899 | ||
| 5 | Rubeck, Jonathan | 1964 | 1 - 0 | Scheurer, Eric | 1418 | ||
| 6 | WALKOVER | 1 - 0 | DEFAULT | ||||
| 4½ - 1½ | |||||||
This match point was vital for Hendon 1, who are now out of the relegation zone in Division 1, half a point ahead of Kings Head 1 and Metropolitan who have also played 9 matches, and ahead of Hackney who are two points behind them with two matches in hand. It will be a tense finish to the season, with second-placed Muswell Hill 1 the next visitors to the Cumberland Club, followed by a visit to struggling Hackney.
Alongside the Division 1 match, Hendon 4 faced Hammersmith 3 in Division 3. Yishai Epstein-Lightman and Rohan Theo Barbier-Ramaiah scored wins on Boards 2 and 3, but defeats on the other four boards meant the visitors won the match.
| Hendon 4 | Hendon 4 | Hammersmith 3 | Hammersmith 3 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kposowa, Kadie | 1832 | 0 - 1 | Thursby, Richard C | 1735 | ||
| 2 | Epstein-Lightman, Yishai | 1659 | 1 - 0 | Ahmed, Ahmed Moustafa Ibrahim | 1635 | ||
| 3 | Barbier-Ramaiah, Rohan Theo | 1577 | 1 - 0 | Royce, Alexander | 1389 | ||
| 4 | Fenton, Sam | 1392 | 0 - 1 | Fookes, Nicholas | 1545 | ||
| 5 | Artman, Tony | 1293 | 0 - 1 | Osseiran, Nadim | 1325 | ||
| 6 | Fenton, Frederick | 1275 | 0 - 1 | Yateh, Amara | 1320 | ||
| 2 - 4 | |||||||
Many thanks to everyone who played this week!